Princess Crazy
by StormDreamCloud
Summary: Five years later, Zuko is the Fire Lord of the Fire Nation and with the help of Avatar Aang, they are trying to undo the damage Lord Ozai had done. But at the same Azula is released from the psychiatric ward. Has her ways changed or is she still the same?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The blank white walls drove me crazy. There were no pictures at all; just an empty space. I spent my time staring at the walls because there really wasn't anything else to do here anyways. I was constricted in a strait jacket and wheeled around in a wheelchair. I no longer talked and I wanted to keep it that way. I was too ashamed of myself so I ended up distancing myself from everyone.

I had a lot of time to think and I thought about what put me here. The past haunted me and I would often cry hours on end. I was filled with regret; the princess that I was before scared me. I was no longer the power hungry person I used to be and wished I hadn't done what I had done.

Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee visited me regularly but I didn't speak to them either. The feeling of shame only grew when they came. Zuko usually came alone and only then I was freed from my strait jacket. I had no more motivation to fire bend anymore. He always brought some tea and I silently sipped it as he talked. Even if his presence made shame rise up in me, I had to admit it was really good tea.

Mai and Ty Lee always came to see me together. That was when I felt the worst. In the past, I had once ordered that they would be thrown in prison to rot. And yet, they still came to visit me. I began to have nightmares in which I was stuck in a trench full of blue flames. I would catch on fire but my body wouldn't disintegrate and the pain grew worse and worse.

One day, Zuko and Mai came in together which was a surprise because Zuko usually came to visit alone. Mai's stomach had expanded a bit and it didn't take a genius to figure out she was pregnant. They were getting married and based on my calm and good behavior the doctors were willing to let me go for that one day.

"Azula, you'll look so pretty," Ty Lee sang as she combed my long and disheveled hair. "You must be happy,"

I didn't answer and just looked into the mirror ahead. My hair was longer and Ty Lee was struggling along with the attendants to undo the knots. I was much paler and bags hung under her golden eyes. Suddenly, a tall woman appeared behind me in the mirror. I violently turned around, surprising Ty Lee and the attendants. My hair became disheveled again when I turned back around.

The only people who were there was Ty Lee and the attendants. The sound of the comb clattering on the floor that Ty Lee dropped was the only noise in the room. The figure disappeared and I settled back in the chair. Confused, the attendants resumed grooming my hair. I could've have sworn that I had seen my mother, Ursa.

"Azula, I picked out two dresses for you," Ty Lee held them up.

One had a beautiful golden color with delicate white embroidery while the other was a rich red colored dress with light blue beads decorating it. I looked over the dresses with careful consideration. I pointed to the golden one as one of the attendants wrapped my hair into a bun.

"I hate this," Mai entered the room.

"You haven't changed," Ty Lee giggled. "You hate everything,"

"Well, let's see, my feet are killing me, my ankles are swollen and I waddle like a duck. Oh and this dress wasn't made for pregnant women,"

"You shouldn't have married the prince then," Ty Lee teased. "Then you wouldn't have to wear the royal gown. Turn around, give us a little spin,"

Mai stuck her tongue out but did what was asked of her. It was a royal red dress with embroideries of black and gold dragons twisting around her waist.

"Azula, isn't she beautiful?" Ty Lee sighed.

"If being in pain due to wearing a tight dress while pregnant is beautiful, then yes, I am beautiful," Mai shot back sarcastically.

"What do you think, Azula?" Ty Lee turned to me.

The attendants were applying make-up on me so I couldn't talk. Instead, I gave my approval by giving her a thumbs up. A knock on the door made Ty Lee jump.

"Who is it?" she asked cautiously.

"It's me, Zuko," he answered.

Ty Lee elbowed one of the attendants who escorted Mai through another door. As soon as the door opened, Zuko found himself on the floor, unable to move. She had hit chi-blocked him.

"I swear, the next time you do that, I'll banish you," he muttered.

"You say that all the time," Ty Lee rolled her eyes. "Besides you can't see the bride before the wedding!"

"I know that!" Zuko lifted his head. "I wanted to talk to Azula. I thought Mai was in the other room,"

"Whoops," the girl turned around with a sheepish grin. "Well, I'll go and leave you guys alone,"

"Ugh," Zuko staggered to the nearest seat. "Well, you look better,"

I nodded in response.

"Anyways, I just wanted to know how you were doing,"

"I'm doing fine," I said in a small voice.

My voice was quivering and it sounded like I had a sore throat due to the fact that I haven't spoken in about five years.

"You look nice," he commented. "It's much better than a strait jacket,"

"Thanks," I softly answered.

"Prince Zuko, we are about to dress Princess Azula," one of the attendants held up the dress I picked out.

"Oh yes," he got up. "I have to go ready for the wedding myself,"

He left and Ty Lee re-entered into the room. I was put in the dress but I had lost so much weight that the attendants finally had to tie a red sash around my waist to make me look decent. Ty Lee then revealed a pair of red flat shoes.

"I figured you'd rather wear this, high heels were never your thing anyways," she said as I slipped my feet into them.

I looked down at myself and relief washed over me. At least for one day, I didn't have to wear that ugly strait jacket.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The ceremony was boring, as was any other traditional events. The excitement picked up a bit more after Zuko and Mai were officially married and the meals were served. The food was much better than what was served at the psych ward but I couldn't eat. People whispered about me but I felt like I could hear them loud and clear. After a while, I quietly slipped out of the room.

Walking around the palace filled me with an immense amount of nostalgia. Soon, I found myself in front of my old bedroom. Carefully, I pushed the door open and walked in. It was clean so I guessed it was dusted and swept of dirt even though I was gone. I sat down on my old bed and smoothed out the sheets with my hands. It's been so long since I've been in my own bed.

I untied the sash around my waist and took off the dress. I was left standing there with an under robe and socks. I reached up and undid my hair and let it fall around my shoulders. Carefully, I lifted the blanket a bit and crawled underneath it. I curled up and soon, I fell asleep.

In the morning, Ty Lee woke me up by throwing the doors wide open with a huge bang. Startled, I was jerked out of my sleep and sat up.

"Azula!" she jumped on my bed. "I knew I'd find you here! Anyways, the doctors agreed to let you stay here for a week because of your good behavior yesterday,"

"Really?" I looked up at her.

"Yep, really!"

"I see you were in your room the whole time," Zuko appeared at the door. "Can't really blame you, everyone was talking about you behind your back,"

"Where's Mai?" I asked.

My voice was starting to sound clearer and clearer but it was still a soft tone that pushed out from my throat.

"She's sleeping. We were up pretty late, thanking all the guests and getting all the congratulations," Zuko answered.

I nodded and began to get out of bed but Ty Lee stopped me. She turned around and stuck her tongue out at my brother.

"NO BOYS ALLOWED!" she hollered.

He sighed and left, closing the doors behind him. Ty Lee picked up the crumpled dress from the floor and smoothed it out. She opened my closet and to my surprise, all my old clothes were still there. Chattering away as always, Ty Lee helped me put on a simple red robe and put away the fancy dress that I wore last night. Again, because I had lost so much weight, she fetched an attendant to get a sash so I could look decent.

"Bring some breakfast too!" she called after the attendant then turned to me. "You need some color in your face,"

I was used to this kind of treatment due to being a princess but that was a long ago and now I just felt out of place. After eating an elaborate breakfast consisting of rice, fish and tea, I took a bath. The perfume oils in the water were a strange scent to me now and the scented soaps were no longer familiar.

Afterwards, Ty Lee and I walked into the garden where Mai was sitting on a bench by herself.

"I couldn't take just staying inside," she said when we approached her. "And I talked to Zuko; he agreed to let you be my personal body guard,"

"Oh really?!" Ty Lee exclaimed.

I sat down next to Mai who was dressed in a large red robe. I looked around and took in the environment. A wave of nostalgia passed through me. I remember playing with them when we were little girls, but now we were full grown women. Mai was now my sister-in-law and Ty Lee had just quit working with the Kyoshi warriors to help care for Mai. And as for me, I was just the crazy old princess with no future.

I snapped my fingers curiously to see if I could still fire bend. A flicker of ember appeared at my finger tips and disappeared as quickly as it was conjured. I tried again with all my might and it was the same result. Worst of all, the flame wasn't even blue; it was a light shade of orange. I sighed and let my hands fall in my lap.

Neither Mai nor Ty Lee said anything. I stood up and mumbled some excuse about being dizzy. Ty Lee offered to walk me back to my room but I told her I would be fine. I locked the door to my room, crawled into bed and began to cry. All I was good for now was just to light a candle.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The next day, Avatar Aang and his fiancé Katara came along with Toph and Sokka. I hid in my bedroom and refused to leave. I didn't want to face them at all. I don't know what I was afraid of; maybe it was the fact that I had tried to kill them all at one point and I was ashamed of myself. Later into the afternoon, I was still hiding under the covers when I heard some movement outside my door. There was a knock on the door and I clutched the covers closer to me.

"Is she in there?" Katara's voice rang out.

"Yeah she's in there. Maybe you should leave her alone; her heartbeat is racing," Toph answered.

"Do you want me to go in with you?" Aang asked.

"No, I'll be fine," Katara answered.

"She's crazy, don't go in there!" it was no mistake that was Sokka.

I teared up and at the word 'crazy' and clutched onto my pillow.

"Sokka," Katara said dangerously.

"Ok, you can go ahead and talk to Princess Crazy but I'm out of here," Sokka responded.

Katara sighed and tried to open the door. The doorknob rattled as she tried to open the locked door.

"Here, let me try," Toph said.

"Toph, no!"

But it was too late; she broke the stone doors down and I curled up even more like a frightened turtle. I didn't want to see them and I silently wished them away. Of course, it didn't work and tears wet my pillow.

"Hey, Azula," Katara softly said.

I didn't move.

"I was wondering how you were doing,"

"Yeah, what's up?" Toph in a rather rude tone, but of course, that was just her personality. "How's the funny farm?"

"Toph!"

"Alright, alright, but really, Azula, relax, your heart is racing like crazy,"

"Why? I'm just Princess Crazy," I cried out but it came out muffled. "What do you want from me?"

"Oh, Azula, don't let Sokka get to you," she slowly peeled the covers off of me. "He's just being ridiculous,"

"Yeah, you'd be stupid to give into his insults," Toph added.

Katara swept the locks of hair from my face. My hair was damp from my tears and without make up, you could see the bags under my eyes. The past two days, attendants had put loads of make-up on me and dressed me in long dresses to hide my bony structure. Without the illusion of make-up, my skin was sickly pale and my bones jutted out. I was sort of glad that Toph was blind because she would've made some remark, compared to Katara who was decent enough not to say anything about it.

"You're not crazy," she sat down next to me.

I sat up and began to cry even more.

"I'm such a mess," I sobbed. "I _am_ crazy,"

"Azula, listen to me, you are not crazy," Katara repeated.

"Sokka's crazy," Toph said.

I didn't answer and Katara got up.

"I just wanted to check up on you," she said. "You're not crazy, ok? Come on Toph, let's go. And fix the doors,"

Toph placed the stone doors back in place and they left. _Princess Crazy_; what a perfect name for me.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"'zula, come on!" Ty Lee shook my shoulders violently.

I was grabbing onto my pillow, curled up and refusing to let go. It was the late afternoon and she and Mai had come to check on me. I had refused to leave my bed after Katara visited me.

"This is ridiculous," Mai said. "Azula, you're a grown woman!"

I shook my head and held onto my pillow even tighter. Ty Lee sighed and grabbed my ankles. She began to pull me out of the bed but I gripped onto one of the bedposts and started screaming.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Zuko burst into the room. "Ty Lee, what the fuck are you doing?!"

"She. Won't. Get. Out. Of. Bed," Ty Lee grit her teeth, still trying to pull me out of bed.

"Stop! Stop it!"

She stopped pulling on my ankles and I curled up, pulling the covers over me. She panted from trying to force me out of bed and my heart raced from screaming.

"Let me talk to her," Zuko told her.

"You can try," Ty Lee shrugged.

"I mean, ALONE," he looked at Ty Lee and Mai.

They left and Zuko pulled a chair up to the head of my bed. I dug my head into my pillow so I didn't have to look at him.

"Azula, what's wrong?" he asked.

I didn't answer.

"I can't help you fix what's wrong if I don't know what the problem is,"

I didn't move and Zuko sighed.

"Is it because you don't like the fact that you have to go back to the psych ward in four days?"

"It doesn't matter where I am, in the end I'm just Princess Crazy," I spoke into my pillow so all Zuko heard was a muffle.

"What?"

"I'm Princess Crazy," I turned my head, facing him.

"Where the hell did you get that from?" he was shocked.

"Sokka,"

"Sokk-, are you serious? Don't listen to what he says. Seriously, only someone like him can come up with something that stupid. Look, Azula, you're my sister and you are not crazy. Now will you please get up? Ty Lee will drive us all crazy from yelling at you to get out of bed,"

I sat up and sighed; it was true, Ty Lee wasn't one to give up so easily.

"I've done all these terrible things and I just feel so guilty," I wiped away a tear. "I've treated every single person in the palace like crap and I've tried to kill your friends. I was happy when you were struck down by our father,"

"That's all in the past; you're different now," Zuko responded.

"I'm a terrible person and I'm paying for it now. Once I get back to the psych ward, I won't be able to have my own kids or even just hold hands with a friend,"

"Actually, I was talking to the doctors earlier today,"

"What? You're going to send me back earlier?"

"No, I was discussing your discharge from the psych ward,"

I looked down at my hands and tried to absorb what Zuko had just said to me.

"Really?" I meekly asked.

"Yes, really," he assured me. "They observed the way you've acted the past three days and they noticed you were going through depression but you're not a threat. All I had to do was agree to increase security around you. You're not very popular amongst the people here,"

"Because I'm Princess Crazy," I mumbled.

"Stop that," Zuko stood up. "I won't tolerate hearing the words 'princess' and 'crazy' together around here,"

I watched as he left and sighed; 'Princess Crazy' rang in my head again and again. He was increasing security to protect others, not me.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

It took about a month for me to settle into a routine. Wake up, bathe, eat breakfast then maybe sit in the garden or walk around the palace. After lunch, I had a calligraphy lesson, which I picked up because I liked the way the ink ran and stained the rice paper. Zuko had asked me if I wanted to resume fire bending but I turned it down. The rest of the day, until dinner, Ty Lee, Mai and I usually hung out.

Mai was progressively growing bigger and bigger. And though none of us thought it was possible, her deep sullen personality grew darker. She entered her 8th month and practically growled at Zuko when he neared her. She snapped at me and Ty Lee but the attendants got the worst of it. One night, she threw some of her knives and flipped a table just because her steak was a little over cooked. If it was either Ty Lee or me, we wouldn't have even noticed.

"Mai!" Ty Lee scolded her. "Look at what you did to 'zula!"

I had subconsciously curled up; shaken up by what had just happened. Mai gave out an exasperated sigh and she just plopped herself back onto the sofa.

Zuko became scarce when Mai was around but he liked to check on how I was doing. He did tell me that I could go anywhere I wanted but I refused to walk outside of the palace walls. Everyone hated me and I knew it. I also refused to take up fire bending again because first of all, I couldn't even make a spark anymore and second, that was the old me; the power hungry Princess Azula that I left in the past. I even heard the attendants talking about me when they thought I wasn't listening.

"She used to be such a bitch and now she's completely calm,"

"Calm? She's more like a zombie,"

"Or a ghost, she just floats around the palace,"

"She's a ghost alright, she's been back for a month and she still looks so pale,"

"She barely even speaks. She used to bitch at us pretty loudly,"

"It's pretty scary how she changed, though I can't complain,"

"Yeah, but she's so creepy though,"

I shuddered and slipped away quietly to my room, crying. Every day, I had to face the past that haunted me and it mocked me. Although I no longer said it out loud, the phrase 'Princess Crazy' always came back to me. The next time the Avatar visited with Katara, Sokka and Toph, I mumbled a hello to them and stuck myself against the wall, trying to make myself as little as possible.

I looked at how Aang and Katara held hands and my heart sank. I also remembered how affectionate Zuko and Mai got before she was pregnant. What about me? Would I find my significant other?

"Ty Lee, do you think a boy would like me?" I asked. "And not be afraid of me?"

We were in my room and she was brushing my hair.

"Of course," she grinned. "'zula, you need to be more positive!"

"I suppose,"

She continued to brush my hair and hummed a little tune.

"How did you tolerate me back then?" I turned around.

"What do you mean?" Ty Lee cocked her head.

"I was so bitchy and obnoxious, so why were you so willing to help me destroy the Avatar?"

"I don't know about Mai but you're my friend and well… We support our friends. I mean Mai can be really negative but she's our friend and we support her anyways,"

I considered this for a moment; it was strange not to have everything at my fingertips. Not that it was something I wanted to revert back to but things had changed. What was my life anymore? What purpose, what meaning and what worth did my life hold?


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

For the first time in my entire life, I heard Mai scream. I wasn't the only one who was startled by this. Ty Lee, the attendants, her parents; we had never heard her scream, ever. I shuddered upon hearing the blood curdling screech that came from Mai's mouth. She was in labor and in the room were just me, Ty Lee, Zuko and the midwife. My hands flew up to my mouth seeing Mai writhe in pain.

Ty Lee started biting her nails and Zuko was holding Mai's hand, who squeezed his hand really hard. Another scream from Mai and then the room was filled with a baby's cries.

"It's a girl!" the midwife said cheerfully.

After she cut the umbilical cord and wrapped it up in a blanket, the midwife stood up and Zuko reached for his newborn daughter. She scoffed and turned away from him.

"The mother holds her first!" And with that she handed the newborn to Mai.

"Anya," Mai smiled. "I finally get to see you,"

Ty Lee wiped the sweat from Mai's forehead and I helped her get up so she could lie down in her own bed next to her child. Mai held her child in her arms and fell asleep, exhausted. I stood with Zuko and Ty Lee as we looked at the new princess. She was so tiny and looked frail; I had never seen a newborn before.

"So her name is Anya?" I whispered.

"I guess so, Mai and I never discussed it," Zuko whispered back.

"Mai decided on her own; remember how she nearly killed him when she hit her fifth month?" Ty Lee whispered as well.

"Ok, let's leave so we don't have to keep whispering," Zuko suggested and we all left the room.

I walked back to my room while Zuko and Ty Lee discussed something. Once again, as I curled up on my bed, I wondered if I would ever meet someone. Soon, Ty Lee came into my room and sat at the end of my bed.

"'zula, I know what you're thinking," she swung her legs back and forth. "You'll find someone and you'll have kids too,"

I didn't answer; I couldn't think of a response. I reached out to my bedside table and picked up a hand mirror. I wanted to look at how my face had changed but instead I saw something that made me jump.

"Are you ok?" Ty Lee asked.

"Yeah, uh," I bit my lip. "I just want to be alone for a bit,"

"Uh, sure," she looked worried but left.

I peered into the mirror again and I looked behind me, startled. I turned back and picked up the mirror again.

"You'll find someone," it was her; my mother.

"You always hated me, so why are you trying to comfort me now?" I growled at the reflection.

"Because you're my baby, and I love you,"

"You thought I was a monster!"

"No, baby, I never thought that!"

My lips trembled and let the hand mirror fall to the floor, breaking the glass. I hid in my safe spot, which was under the covers of my bed. Hot tears poured from my eyes and onto my pillow. My own mother thought I was a monster. She was right, of course, but it still hurt. I gripped the sheets and bit my lip.

No matter how hard I tried to wish it away, the past was the past but it still happened. I couldn't undo the damage that I had done. People would always remember that I was crazy, power hungry person who destroyed anything that got in her way. That was why I refused to even take one step outside the palace walls. I, Princess Crazy, would have to deal with the burden of all the sins that I had committed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

About a week later, the palace was filled with paparazzi. Zuko and Mai, who was holding Anya, were answering questions while Ty Lee stood in front of the press. Ty Lee readied herself behind them to jump into action if anything were to happen. Before the interview, Zuko asked if I wanted to be a part of it. I violently shook my head and clutched onto a big stuffed panda bear. For some reason, I had become unreasonably attached to the doll. I even named it Cookie and the attendants began to talk about me and Cookie.

Curious, I did sit myself down in a room with a veil curtain, holding onto Cookie and sucking my thumb. I know I was acting like a child despite the fact that I was almost twenty years old. But I had come to the conclusion that I was never going to get married and have kids or any other things an adult would do. So my reaction was to act like a child.

After half an hour of questions being thrown at Zuko, I decided I was getting tired of it and got up to leave. But before I exited the room, I heard my name.

"Fire Lord Zuko, is it true that Princess Azula has been committed to a psychiatric ward?"

Word that I was in the psych ward was supposed to be kept inside the palace walls. The only people outside of the palace who knew about it were Avatar Aang, Katara, Sokka and Toph and they would never leak that information.

"That is a false statement; my sister has not been in the psychiatric ward," Zuko lied. "Next question,"

I bit my lip and gripped onto Cookie even harder. Then I ran for it; I raced to my bedroom and hid under the covers of my bed. Two hours later, the palace was in an uproar. Zuko was seething with rage and he wanted to find out who leaked the information about my recent psychiatric admission. Mai and Ty Lee sat at the end of my bed while I held Anya. I really liked to hold Anya and that was when I finally let go of Cookie.

"THIS ONE," Zuko threw one of my attendants into my bedroom and onto the floor. "SHE'S THE ONE WHO OPENED HER MOUTH!"

Her short black hair was disheveled and tears streaked down her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry, I just told my family and I didn't think my brother would say anything," she sobbed.

"You should've thought twice," Mai looked down at her.

"I'm sorry," she put her hands together and knelt on the floor. "Please forgive me,"

"You're lucky we were able to cover it up!" Zuko towered over her. "You're banished!"

"No, wait!" I handed Anya to Mai. "Come here,"

She walked over to me, trembling. I held Cookie close to me and took her chin in my hand.

"Look at me," I ordered.

She looked down, embarrassed.

"I said, look at me," I ordered once again but louder.

Her tearful eyes lifted up to me and her lips trembled.

"Did you think that breaking one little rule wouldn't be a big deal?" I said dangerously.

She broke out into fresh tears and sobbed.

"'zula," Ty Lee put a hand on my arm.

"Not now," I said shortly and shook her off. "Answer the question!"

"I'm so sorry!" the girl sobbed.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" I screamed.

"OK, 'ZULA, WE'RE DONE HERE," Ty Lee pulled the girl away from me.

Zuko dragged the sobbing attendant out of my room and I dug my head into the back of Cookie's head. I was furious; it was enough that my own memories haunted me. At that moment, I hated everything.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The next day, Avatar Aang and Katara visited after hearing about the information about my hospital stay leaked out. Zuko was talking to them in the throne room when I walked in. He held a newspaper in his hands as he spoke. Katara looked up when I came in but Zuko and Aang were too deep in conversation to notice me.

"Give me that," I snatched the paper from my brother, surprising him.

I dropped Cookie in horror; the headline read '**PRINCESS AZULA IN PSYCHIATRIC WARD'**. I read the article which detailed the interview from yesterday and Zuko's denial. It also included my absence of five years and that my whereabouts had been debated until now. In anger, I tore it into two.

"Azula, we're going to straighten this out, ok?" Katara picked up Cookie and handed it to me.

"How?" I frowned and took the stuffed animal from her.

"I think you need to make a public appearance," Aang suggested.

"No," I immediately answered.

"Actually, I think he's right," Zuko said. "Just one picture of you in public for the press and they'll most likely leave you alone,"

I didn't say anything; he was right. If I showed my face just once, the paparazzi would leave me alone. But I knew everyone hated me. I gripped onto Cookie and high tailed it out of there. I had the attendants ready a bath for me and I sat in the tub alone. Cookie was stationed at a chair on the opposite side of the room right next to the mirror. I closed my eyes for a moment and when I opened them again, she was there again.

"What do _you_ want?" I snarled.

"I want you to let go of all the guilt you hold," she answered.

"And what do you care? _Mother_?" I emphasized the last word in anger.

"I care about you and I want you to be happy,"

I stared at her; she hadn't changed at all. I had her gold eyes and soft pink lips. She was very tall but elegant.

"I can never be happy again," I sighed.

"Yes you can," she softly answered. "Just let go of all the guilt,"

"SHUT UP!" I screamed.

I grabbed a bottle of shampoo and chucked it at the mirror. It broke with a loud crash and the pieces flew all over the room. The door knob rattled and someone was rapidly knocking on the door.

"'Zula! 'Zula!" Ty Lee's voice rang out. "Are you ok?"

I got out of the tub and put on a bathrobe. I walked to the door and opened it to find not only Ty Lee but Katara as well.

"What happened here?!" Ty Lee gasped. "'Zula, you're bleeding! Here, sit; don't just walk around on the glass,"

Carefully, Katara approached me and began to heal my wounds. Zuko and Aang looked in and their jaws dropped at the ghastly scene. There were shards of mirror everywhere and I was covered in blood.

"Azula, what happened?" Zuko asked.

"I-I thought saw a rat! And I just panicked!" I lied.

I pointed to the bottle of shampoo lying underneath the empty mirror frame.

"Guys, you have to remember, she's still shaken up about everything," Katara said. "It's been a while since she's been out of the hospital but she's still not used to the outside world,"

"I'm sorry!" I blurted out and I teared up.

"Shhhh, 'Zula, it's alright," Ty Lee pushed Zuko and Aang out of the room and sent them to get an attendant to sweep up the broken glass.

I took off my robe and Katara healed all my cuts on my body. Ty Lee and Katara gently helped me into fresh clothes and led me to my bedroom. I curled up under the sheets as usual and Katara placed Cookie next to me. When they left, I fell asleep, only to wake up screaming again.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"She's just shaken up, ok?" Katara whispered. "Two freak outs like that in a day is normal,"

"I _know_!" Zuko whispered back. "And she's been perfectly clear about wanting to stay _inside_. Now we can't ask her to do a public appearance,"

I was on my bed rocking back and forth, gripping onto Cookie so hard that you could hear the seams starting to stretch open. I had just had my old nightmare about me in a trench ablaze with blue flames. And while I was screaming in pain, my body wouldn't burn.

"I have an idea," Mai spoke up.

"What?" Zuko turned to her.

"The public wants to see the new princess as well," she handed Anya to me.

I dropped Cookie and cradled Anya in my arms. Mai got up and positioned Zuko and Aang so they were facing me.

"Here," she held up Zuko's hands and formed a square out of his fingers so it looked like he was going to take a picture of me.

She sat down next to me and put an arm around my shoulder.

"That's it!" Aang exclaimed. "Just take a picture like that in the garden, publish it and that's it! Azula, you don't have to leave the palace anymore,"

"Really?" I looked up.

"Really,"

Honestly, making the public appearance was no longer the biggest concern. What really bothered me was my mother.

The next day, attendants fussed over me and Mai's hair and make-up. My facial bone structure was less apparent but I still needed make-up to make me look healthy. My hair was washed, conditioned, combed and carefully put up into a bun. Mai had her hair done in the usual fashion and we both wore matching red silk dresses. My ribs no longer stuck out so I filled out into the dress nicely. Anya was dressed in a tiny white dress with red frills and bows.

It took a couple of shots for me to get comfortable with the fact that I was being photographed. It also took another couple of shots to calm Anya down. She was fussing and wouldn't stay still so taking just one photo took longer than expected. I didn't want to be in the paper but it was better than the alternative which was leaving the palace perimeters. After we all agreed on a picture Zuko took Anya inside and left Mai, Ty Lee and I stayed in the garden.

"Hey, remember when we were little girls, we used to play here?" I said.

"Yeah," Ty Lee sighed. "That was so long ago,"

"A lifetime ago," Mai added in quietly.

I gazed out into fountain and a wave of nostalgia washed over me.

"Remember when I pushed you into that fountain with Zuko?" I elbowed Mai.

"Yes, I also remember getting a bunch of bruises on my legs," she made a face.

"You had a thing for Zuzu since forever," I told her, making her smile.

"Oh, I haven't heard that nickname in forever!" Ty Lee squealed.

She back flipped onto the ledges surrounding the fountain and walked on her hands. After a series of flips and twirls, she finally stood on her two feet in front of us. I haven't seen Ty Lee do that in five years.

"I never could figure out how you could do that," I flinched.

"Don't try, I won't be able to figure it out too," Mai put a hand on my arm. "We'll both just end up with headaches,"

I stood up and left the garden. The nostalgia was too much for me to handle.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Every time I saw a hand mirror, I crushed the glass into a powder and made sure it was gone and out of my sight. When I took my baths, I put a towel over the mirror before my mother even began talking. I closed the curtains to avoid her if she were to ever reflect in the window panes.

Mai was conked out most of the time now because even though the attendants were there to help, Anya's crying woke her up. The reason that the crying didn't bother me was because I slept in the opposite wing of the palace. And since Ty Lee was her bodyguard, she was stationed in front of her bedroom.

Katara began to visit a lot; she was staying on Air Temple Island, an island that Katara and Aang built their home in. Every day, as Aang came to talk to Zuko and the Earth King, she came to visit me. I felt like she understood me the most. She was the one who stopped my rampage and I was grateful. I would've turned the world into a dictatorship with sole power at my fingertips.

She didn't talk to me unless I talked first and even then, she didn't push me to talk at all. Sometimes Toph accompanied her and I listened to her babble on about her 'lily livers' or something. I mostly listened and didn't speak. Then, one day, I noticed something that made me crack.

I hadn't paid attention before but I could see a slight bump on Katara's stomach as well as on Toph's. I reached out and lightly touched Katara's stomach.

"Yes, Toph and I are pregnant," she smiled.

After they left, I went to the bathroom and looked into the mirror that replaced the one I had broken before.

"Azula, let go of your guilt," my mother said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I growled at her.

"Don't you see? You will never be happy if you feel so guilty. You will never feel inferior to anyone if you just let it go,"

I slammed my hand against the mirror, cracking the glass. I shrieked and blue flames appeared at my fingertips. Without a second thought, I trashed the room.

"Azula, please," she pleaded.

"SHUT UP!" I punched the mirror, completely shattering it.

"'ZULA! 'ZULA!" Ty Lee banged on the door. "WHAT'S GOING ON IN THERE?!"

I ignored her and I picked up a shard of glass. Her eyes reflected in the glass and I screamed again. The blue flames became hotter and fiercer than ever. The doorknob rattled and I could hear Ty Lee and Mai yelling for me to open the door. I raised the glass once again.

"Azula, please, just let go," she cried out.

I raised the shard of glass to my face, screeched one more time and then everything went black.

**Epilogue**

I was walking down the hallway to check on Azula when I saw Ty Lee and Mai desperately banging on her bathroom door. I could hear glass being broken and smelled something burning. She was screaming at someone to shut up but no one answered her.

"Move away," I pushed Ty Lee and my wife away from the door.

I burned the door down and what we found was a complete disaster. Shards of glass were everywhere, her mirror was broken again and blood was splattered all over the room. Worst of all, blue flames were still eating away at some part of the room and furniture. Ty Lee and Mai put out the fire quickly.

Her anger; it was bottled up and finally exploded. Now I knew why she refused to take classes. It had happened to me, I couldn't fire bend at one point and with the help of Aang, I found a new purpose and point of view on fire bending. Anguish had built up in her and exploded into her infamous blue flames but she couldn't fire bend before because of her quiet demeanor.

I knelt down next to my sister, ignoring the glass on the floor. What I saw up close was ghastly; Azula's face was a mess. Shards of mirrors were lodged into her eyes and it looked like she tried to scratch them out. I got up and threw up in the tub. The sight of my sister in that state made me sick. Ty Lee began to cry while Mai froze up in shock. I left, feeling sickened; I just couldn't stand the gruesome scene.

The next time I saw her was back at the psych ward. Her hair had gotten even longer and unruly. There were bandages around her eyes; she was now blind, having succeeded in tearing her eyeballs out. She was back in the strait jacket and the wheelchair.

"Hello Azula," I softly greeted.

"Zuzu!" she grinned. "Is that my dear brother?"

"Yeah, it's me, Zuko,"

"Oh, Zuzu, how is everything?"

"Things are fine," I said uncomfortably.

"Don't give me that tone of voice," she mockingly pouted.

"How are you feeling?"

"I feel great!" she laughed. "Never better! Princess Crazy couldn't be any happier,"

After talking a bit more, I left but as I walked away, I could hear her crooning to herself. Here and there, she cackled in a way that sent chills down my spine.

"I'm Princess Crazy!" she giggled. "Oh, I just love being royalty! Come back soon Zuzu!"


End file.
